Local search engine optimization can be a very useful way to bring extra traffic to your website and gain attention for your local business, but only if you do it correctly. Let´s take a look at some of the most common errors made by those getting started in local search engine optimization.

Don´t spam. No doubt you´ve seen those emails offering services to submit your business site to 500 website directories or offers to get your ad in 20,000 inboxes. These don´t help you at all, and you´ll be out $25-50 that was badly spent. Local search engine optimization should be about building natural links, not spammy ones.

Avoid general keywords. While it would be great to rank #1 for “crafts” or “internet marketing”, these keywords are so competitive that you have no chance of getting that top place. However, being more specific gives you a far better opportunity, so instead of “crafts” you might go for “Topeka yarn crafts”. True local search engine optimization will utilize a locale as a keyword.

Watch the keyword stuffing. Keywords are good, so more must be better, right? Wrong. If every other word in your articles is a keyword, the search engines will pick up on that. Using over 5% keyword density is just asking for trouble.

By avoiding these common mistakes, you should end up with great results in your local search engine optimization.

Local pay per click advertising has been growing in popularity and there are those who enjoy debating whether it is actually a better method than local search engine optimization. The truth is that both methods are very effective when done correctly, but local pay per click does have some advantages over local search engine optimization. Here are some of the reasons I think it is better.

• Search engines work with you when you use local pay per click advertising, as opposed to eying you suspiciously. This is a big advantage, even if you have to pay for it.

• At the moment, there is very little competition in local pay per click advertising as most small businesses are focusing on SEO rather than paid advertising. This is a good time to jump in and get started with a program like Google AdWords or Yahoo! Search Marketing.

• Local pay per click advertising is also fast in comparison to local search engine optimization. While getting a good ranking could take months or even years with SEO, local pay per click allows you to get that same place in hours, simply by placing the best bid.

There are plenty of advantages to both local pay per click and local search engine optimization. They are both good systems and rather than pick one, I´d suggest using both to build traffic and popularity.